The Paradox Files
by The Lazy Hipster
Summary: The War is over and The Grim Reaper has a job for you Naruto... what will you do if you're the only one left who can?


**I've found my inspiration to write this story again. The first chapter I wrote for this was really like a rough draft to see where I could go with this; however, I've decided to go in an almost completely different direction with this. Meaning that this is going to take a lot of planning and may take years to finish. Originally I was gonna write several stories and then have them all connect together for this really awesome tangled story, but that would make this really confusing so I had a better idea. I've got ambition for this story. I want people to enjoy this adventure so much that they reread it and find themselves in love with it every time. So without further delay, let's try this again.**

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The war was over. It was over the second she appeared. Kaguya the "Rabbit Goddess". With one wave of her hand she tore up the very ground our heroes stood on. It was horrifying to witness. Naruto didn't have a plan, there was no way he could save all these people. He had to do something drastic. He knew he would have to do it quickly but would he have the time to tell Sasuke? He could feel his chakra fading the longer he stood there.

 **"Kid you don't have much time. If you're gonna go through with this it will rip you apart."** Kurama growled lowly.

"I know Kurama, but I only have the one shot I don't know if I even remember all the hand signs. It was so long ago I saw this Jutsu in the Forbidden Scroll. I'm gonna need a second." Naruto shot back.

 **"Get Sasuke's attention and I'll start building up the chakra. At most you probably have five minutes to remember what you need to about the seal. Don't waste it."** The great beast responded and ended all room for argument. Naruto just grunted and jumped over to the just as tired Uchiha.

"Oi Sasuke!"

"What do you want? We don't have time to chat here."

"I've got a plan but I need you to buy me some time."

"What are you going to do?" Sasuke asked curiously.

"Something _very_ stupid." Naruto said gravely but trying to hide his discomfort with a goofy grin on his face. Sasuke didn't buy it but he knew better than to question him at this point. They were equals now.

"Are you quite finished yet?" Her soft voice echoed across the battlefield but it carried so much weight with it. She appeared suddenly in front of them. Forcing them to scatter lest they be bisected by her divining rod.

"Whatever it is you're planning won't work. I am the only one worthy of this power you hold. It belongs to **_ME_**." And with the utterance of these words she raised her hands. Fire poured from her fingertips and washed over them like a tidal wave. Sasuke couldn't have that. It wasn't time yet. He swiped at the ground with his chokuto creating a gorge in the ground, lightning bursting forth from the opening.

"Raiton: Thunder King's Barrier" The Lightning formed so tightly arcing around each and every individual streak forming a barrier so high that when the fire reached it an explosion of steam covered the entire field.

"What the hell kind of move is that!?" Naruto shouted angrily at Sasuke. Sasuke panted heavily in exertion and glared half-heartedly at Naruto.

"I created it to combat your stupid Rasenshuriken but right now isn't the time to be upset about it just hurry up and do what you need to you moron!" Sasuke shouted back irritatedly. Didn't he ask him to buy some time? Why was he wasting it? Suddenly as soon as this thought crossed his mind he could see balls of red and blue chakra begin to form in the air. It was like when any of the Jinchuuriki began to form a bijuudama but the chakra wasn't nearly as dense. He looked over at Naruto to find him speeding through hand signs and mumbling to himself.

'What kind of jutsu is this? It's like he's drawing chakra from the atmosphere itself.' Sasuke was dumbfounded. He had no answer to this anomaly, but luckily someone else did.

"Naruto you can't be serious! Where did you learn this technique?!" Minato called out to him in fear. He knew what this technique was. He and Jiraiya had worked on it years ago to no avail, it was too dangerous to use and the repercussions were too high to consider using it as a last stand tactic, it would have created an explosion that no one would be safe from. Sarutobi looked on sadly as he realized too the magnitude of this plan.

'So it has come to this has it? My failure has come full circle. I never thought he would learn this technique from all those years ago. The one Orochimaru perverted.'

"I'm sorry dad but there is no other way, it's either this or we all die!... _Arcane Art of Seals: Binding Path of Truth. KAI!_ " It was like an explosion of colors. Each floating ball of chakra expanded and burst forth dragging in Kaguya and Black Zetsu along with the tree. Kaguya was screaming bloody murder, she couldn't believe someone had the audacity to seaseal her away again after just coming back. The Hokage saw this and began cutting down all of its hostages. But Sasuke couldn't move, he was stuck to the spot watching his best friend begin to peel away. His skin becoming more and more pale as the black hole of energy encased him. An endless sea of kanji began to spread across his body almost blinding him with the sheer amount of energy the seal was giving off. The Hokage landed in a circle around the quickly dying hero, tears streaming down his face as he tried to keep it together, the last of the tree entering the large seal his body now became. Hagoromo watched as the boy fell to his knees. Through utter willpower he was still alive but only for now. Soon the seal would take him too.

"There truly is no ninja like you boy. You knew you were going to die but you did it anyway. Why?" Hagoromo knew his answer but wanted to hear him say it anyway.

"Because I wanted to save everyone. This world that I love, it can only grow stronger now." His breathing was ragged and he could hardly stand but he grinned anyway. "It was worth it to do what I could do the best way I knew how..." At this point the Hokage were also beginning to fade and they all smiled proudly at what he had accomplished.

Minato was in shock. "This seal was supposed to be a last resort that would seal everything the user's chakra latched on to and then send it rushing back to you. Turning the user into the seal. Upon the seal doing its job it would create an explosion. The risks were too high to use so Master Jiraiya and I scrapped the project. And yet, you're still alive and there was no explosion. Why?"

At this point Sarutobi interjected. "Orochimaru found the jutsu and intended for the explosion and the seal to form on the target but all he got was the seal to then become the user and use their chakra to power itself. The explosion will be inside the body instead of outside. We lost too many ninja to his reckless experiments with this technique before he gave up on it as well."

"But that doesn't explain how you know about it Naruto?"

"I found it in the Forbidden Scroll and tried to learn it but figured the Shadow (cough) Clone Jutsu would be more important." Naruto was getting worse. He could feel his chakra points imploding on themselves within his body. Soon he would lose the function of his limbs.

"It looks like you're gonna be Hokage after all Sasuke...heh.."

"You idiot, you always promised you would be Hokage. What do I tell Hinata? I have no one left now." Sasuke would later vehemently deny that he was shedding tears for his friend but right now he didn't care. Naruto looked around serenely until his chest heaved, feeling his life force leaving him much quicker now, he proceeded to ask the much needed question.

"How do we release the Infinite Tsukuyomi old man Sage?" Naruto asked through pained gasps.

"You two must make the Seal of Reconciliation." He answered back. "But once you do. You will be lost to this world forver. Your soul will belong to the Shinigami."

"A shinobi is one who perseveres." Naruto said with a huge grin on his face so wide his eyes closed. And so the two walked toward each other and interlocked their fingers.

"Take care of them for me okay Sasuke?"

"Always...dobe"

And with that Naruto ceased to exist.

At least, he ceased to be _alive_ in any case. He woke up lying down. He could see nothing and yet he could see the outline of the stars. There was no light here. Just him. That is, until he sat up. Then and only then did he hear her voice.

"You think you've won? You've prevented nothing. I will just come back stronger again and again until I see this world destroyed. Your kind doesndoesn't deserve the power you possess. It was mine to begin with and it will be mine when I take it back." Oh great Kaguya was here too. And here she was. Sitting there on her knees in the seiza position. As if waiting for the perfect moment to strike with a maddeningly large sneer on her face. She had the upmost confidence in her statement.

"You say that but we are both dead. There is no escaping this void we're in. There isn't even anything here. If you plan on going back I'll just have to stop you again." Naruto declared and attempted to stand up only to find that he was rooted to the spot.

 **"There will be none of that happening anytime soon _thief_. You stole what we gave to the world all for yourself. Now I will take back what you hold so precious and see how you fare then." **It was a voice so commanding Naruto found he could not speak. He could not even turn his head to see the speaker, but he could see Kaguya's face suddenly drop her sneer and turn to one of horror. He could feel a presence behind him so crushing he wanted to close his eyes and wish it away, but he couldn't. His eyes, like the rest of his body refused to do what he wanted. So stiff as a board he watched as the figure strode past him, a black cloak covering his form as he stood in front of Kaguya. Naruto could swear he felt xolder as the stranger walked by but that must have been a trick. The figure then held his hand out at arm's length and waited as shadows and wisps of dark smoke formed on the ground underneath him, rising until they met his hand he grabbed at it and pulled from its murky depths the beginning of a pole, black as night, he continued pulling as it became clear that the pole was not just a pole but attached at the end was a curved blade. A scythe to be exact. The blade upon the scythe was a contradiction to the rest of the weapon. It was pure white. So white in fact, that it looked like it had been dipped in a pool of pale moonlight. Without a word the figure Naruto was guessing was the Shinigami attempted to cut off her head only to disappear into the mist. The only sound made was an echo of childlike laughter.

 ** _"Majora..._ tch I'll have your head." **The figure then turned around to face him. Naruto's face turned into a silent scream upon looking at him. His face was a skull. It was snowy white and his head was covered in flames but his skull did not burn. The cloak masked the rest of his body but Naruto had a feeling the rest of him was the same. The hood that covered most of his head looked as if there was mist dropping from his form. It gave him an Ethereal look. One that frightened Naruto to his core.

"Who are you?" Naruto found his voice.

The being cackled. At least Naruto thought he did. It sounded like the rattling of wood pipes and as raspy as a creaky boat.

 **"I am what your kind knows as the Shinigami and I have a job for you."**

"What the hell?..."

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 **That's it folks. That is the reworked first chapter of The Paradox Files. Hope ya liked it and I will see you again soon.**

 ** _Mata Ne_**


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